Hull crowdfunding for Libby

I wanted to do something to help lay her to rest. To say bye to her from Hull Jodie Preece

A FUNDRAISING page has been set up to help raise money for the funeral of Libby Squire.

Jodie Preece, 33, a paramedic who works in Hull, is among several people who have set up crowdfunding pages with the aim of bringing Hull together to pay for the 21-year-old’s funeral.

Meanwhile already-established pages are continuing to raise thousands of pounds in donations as Hull rallies around to help Libby’s family.

Libby was last seen alive in the early hours of Friday, February 1, after she was turned away from the Welly nightclub in Beverley Road but seven weeks of searching eventually came to a tragic end on Wednesday when her body was found near Spurn Point.

Gofundme and Justgiving pages set up in early February, during the early days of the investigation, totalled more than £10,000, but the outpouring of grief in recent times has resulted in yet more money flooding in to support the Squire family. A friend in Libby’s hometown, High Wycombe, set up a page to support the family by covering their hotel bills or any other support they needed. It reached £4,500 by mid-february but has now ticked over to break through its £5,000 goal.

A second page, set up by a Hull man, has generated more than £7,000 – far exceeding its initial £500 target.

Meanwhile Ms Preece, of Hessle Road, has now set up another page and wants to support Libby’s parents to “help lay her to rest”. The page has raised almost £200, but aims to raise around another £300 to ease the burden of burying their daughter. “We’ve all been following her story and it’s the not knowing that really gets me,” she said. “What drove me to do it is that I know what it is like to be away from home and how Hull helped me.

“I’ve found Hull to be a very welcoming city and full of good-hearted people. “I wanted to do something to help lay her to rest. To say bye to her from Hull and for the family. I wanted to do something from Hull.” To donate, visit www. justgiving.com and search Libby Squire.